*

Mersinger, Sommers and Sterling being considered for CFTC

chair,

sources say

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Trump's administration aims to end Biden's crypto

crackdown and

promote digital assets

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Transition team expected to decide on financial agency

nominations after Treasury secretary pick

By Hannah Lang, Michelle Price, Chris Prentice

WASHINGTON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Officials on

President-elect Donald Trump's transition team are considering

current and former Commodity Futures Trading Commission

officials for chair of the agency, according to four people with

knowledge of the matter.

While the derivatives market regulator has traditionally been

seen as a junior player in financial policy, it is likely to

play a more prominent role as Trump's Republican administration

starts to overhaul cryptocurrency regulations next year.

Among those under consideration for CFTC chair is Summer

Mersinger, a Republican CFTC commissioner who has defended

crypto firms in the face of enforcement actions and advocated

for the agency to write rules of the road for the crypto

industry, three of the people said.

Mersinger is currently seen as the frontrunner, in part because

she was a top aide to Republican Senator John Thune from 2004 to

2016, two said. Senate Republicans on Wednesday elected Thune to

lead the chamber next year.

Also in the mix for CFTC chair is former Republican CFTC

commissioner Jill Sommers, who currently works at Washington

consultancy Patomak Global Partners, and Josh Sterling, partner

at law firm Milbank and a former CFTC official, three of the

people said.

The situation is fluid and the transition team is not

expected to start deciding on financial agency nominations this

week, said one of the above sources and a fourth person with

knowledge of the matter. They added that those announcements

will likely come after Trump chooses a Treasury secretary.

The CFTC currently comprises five politically appointed

commissioners: three Democrats and two Republicans.

Caroline Pham, the other Republican CFTC commissioner, is

also a possible contender and keen for the job, two of the

people said. She has called for the agency to create a program

to support the development of digital asset companies.

Mersinger and Pham declined to comment through spokespeople

on Thursday. Sterling, Sommers and a CFTC spokesperson also

declined to comment. Politico first reported earlier on Thursday

that the four were in the running.

"President-Elect Trump is making decisions on who will serve

in his second Administration. Those decisions will be announced

when they are made," Karoline Leavitt, Trump transition

spokeswoman, told Reuters via email.

President Joe Biden's regulators have sued multiple crypto

companies, arguing they are violating U.S. securities,

derivatives trading and anti-money-laundering laws. Crypto

companies say the rules are not appropriate for their industry,

and have lobbied for Congress to create a new framework overseen

by the CFTC.

Trump courted crypto cash with promises to be a "crypto

president," and the industry is pushing for his administration

to make good on a raft of promised policies that would end that

crackdown and promote the widespread adoption of digital

assets.

Transition team officials are discussing how to put those

policies into action, and are taking advice from prominent

crypto industry executives, two of the people said.

Among them are former CFTC Chair Heath Tarbert, who is chief

legal officer at stablecoin issuer Circle, and former Republican

CFTC commissioner Brian Quintenz, who is head of policy for a16z

crypto, the crypto venture funds of Andreessen Horowitz, the

people said.

Tarbert declined to comment through a Circle spokesperson.

Quintenz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.